Systems and methods for managed connectivity wall outlets using low energy wireless communication

ABSTRACT

A system providing connectivity management is provided. The system comprises: a content management server configured to manage connectivity for a network; one or more central controllers configured to collect connectivity information for at least a portion of the network for use by the content management server; and at least one outlet having one or more ports for receiving one or more plugs, wherein connectivity information is communicated between the outlet and the central controller through one or more wireless communication interface.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application claims benefit of U.S. Patent Application Ser.No. 62/526,176, filed Jun. 28, 2017; the entire content of theaforementioned patent application is incorporated herein by reference asif set forth in its entirety.

BACKGROUND

Managed connectivity is an important technology for data centers whereoptical fiber and wire connectivity is used to interconnect highbandwidth ports between network elements such as servers, switches, androuters to other network elements. As data centers have grown larger andbecome more security conscious and more geographically diverse, the needfor connectivity identification, near real time detection andself-documentation, are becoming compulsory requirements.

In certain systems, a managed connectivity system may provideconnectivity information regarding wall outlets or other similardevices. The connectivity information acquired from the wall outlets maybe provided to an upstream controller such as a middleware or databasesystem. The connectivity information may be used in conjunction withconnectivity information acquired from other parts of a network tocreate a map of the network. To acquire information regarding the walloutlets, a wall outlet would include an Ethernet switch. Through theEthernet switch, a single cable may be used for communications, power,along with providing a communicative path for the acquisition ofconnectivity information regarding the outlet. However, theimplementation of an Ethernet switch and the connecting of cables to theEthernet switches may be expensive while requiring considerable power tooperate.

SUMMARY

A system providing connectivity management is provided. The systemcomprises: a content management server configured to manage connectivityfor a network; one or more central controllers configured to collectconnectivity information for at least a portion of the network for useby the content management server; and at least one outlet having one ormore ports for receiving one or more plugs, wherein connectivityinformation is communicated between the outlet and the centralcontroller through one or more wireless communication interface.

DRAWINGS

Understanding that the drawings depict only exemplary embodiments andare not therefore to be considered limiting in scope, the exemplaryembodiments will be described with additional specificity and detailthrough the use of the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIGS. 1A and 1B are block diagrams illustrating exemplary embodiments ofoutlets communicating through a low energy wireless interface to provideconnectivity information;

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an exemplary embodiment of anoutlet microcontroller connected to a plug;

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an exemplary embodiment of multipleoutlets in communication with a single central controller through lowenergy wireless interfaces;

FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an exemplary embodiment of multipleoutlets in communication with multiple central controllers through lowenergy wireless interfaces;

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an exemplary embodiment of a humanmachine interface displaying information related to multiple outlets;

FIG. 6 is a flow diagram of one exemplary embodiment of a method foracquiring connectivity information from an outlet;

FIG. 7 illustrates a block diagram of one embodiment of an augmentedreality device;

FIG. 8 illustrates one embodiment of a user utilizing an augmentedreality device to identify and view information about an outlet

FIG. 9 illustrates one embodiment of augmented reality eye glasses;

FIG. 10 is an illustration of one embodiment of a view by a user of anoutlet, a marker, and an augmented reality projection;

FIG. 11 is an illustration of another embodiment of a view by a user ofan outlet, a marker and an augmented reality projection;

FIG. 12 is an illustration of yet another embodiment of a view by a userof an outlet, a marker and an augmented reality projection; and

FIG. 13 comprises a flow chart illustrating one exemplary embodiment ofa method 1300 of using an AR device to assist with identifyinginformation about an outlet.

In accordance with common practice, the various described features arenot drawn to scale but are drawn to emphasize specific features relevantto the exemplary embodiments.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

In the exemplary embodiments described herein, systems and methods formanaged connectivity using personal local area networks are provided.For example, low energy wireless technology and other wirelesscommunication technologies used for personal local area networks may beimplemented in managed connectivity systems. In certain implementations,the low energy wireless technology provides both small size and lowerpower consumption. Due to the small size and lower power consumption,the systems and methods that are used to access identification data usedto manage the connections in a system can be moved from an outlet intoplugs that are connected into ports in the outlet.

In certain embodiments, low energy wireless technology may be used toprovide connection information about wall outlets or similar devices.For example, outlets, equipped with low energy wireless technology, maycommunicate connection information to a central controller. Outlets, asdescribed herein, may include contacts that are capable of readingmemory devices on plugs connected thereto. For example, an outlet mayinclude connection point identification (CPID) style contacts that arecapable of reading memory devices in a CPID patch cord. In at least oneimplementation, to enable communications with the central controller andprovide a microcontroller for the detecting the insertion of connectors(e.g. of cables) into a receptacle (e.g. a port) of a wall outlet, thewall outlet may also include a System-On-Chip (SoC). The SoC may containa low energy wireless radio through which the SoC communicatesconnection information to the central controller. Further, the outletmay acquire power through a battery (such as a coin cell type battery),by harvesting power from local energy sources, or through power overEthernet (PoE).

In at least one implementations, a central controller may function as abridge between the low energy wireless technology implemented in theoutlet and a TCP/IP interface using Ethernet. When the centralcontroller acts as the bridge between the different technologies, thecentral controller may send connection information to a central contentmanagement system or server. In certain implementations, the centralcontent management system or server also functions as the centralcontroller and is able to communicate directly with the outlets whilefunctioning as the central content server. Further, a central controlmay be able to serve as an IEEE802.11 compliant WiFi Access Point toprovide connectivity for devices such as a wireless printer or othermobile devices.

In certain embodiments, the central controller may be a single dedicatedcentral controller that receives connection information from the SoCs ofmultiple wall outlets. When the central controller receives informationfrom multiple wall outlets, the central controller may employ a locationservice to help with load balancing so that the central controller isnot overwhelmed from communications being transmitted all at once. Forexample, the central controller may monitor the received signal strengthindications (RSSI) for the multiple wall outlets; the central controllermay use other location services as well. Based on the locationinformation of the wall outlets, the central controller may handleinformation received from different subsets of the wall outlets atdifferent times.

In an alternative implementation, the central controller may bevirtualized in a workstation PC, where the central controller runs as atask in the background to communicate connection information receivedfrom an outlet to a content management system. In such animplementation, a local personal computer (PC) in an area near the walloutlet may function as a central controller while not functioning as adedicated central device. Thus, a subset of PCs in an area may beassigned to function as central controllers and gather information fromthe wall outlets and provide the information to the content managementserver through a TCP/IP connection.

In at least one implementation, at initialization time, centralcontrollers (be they local dedicated controllers or virtualized centralcontrollers executing on PCs) may collect signal and other deviceinformation for wall outlets that are visible to the centralcontrollers. For example, the central controllers may collectinformation such as signal strength, error rate, delay, and other deviceinformation. The central controllers then may pass the information on tothe content management server. The content management server may use theinformation to pair central controllers with certain wall outlets. Forexample, the central management system may pair central controllers withwall outlets based on signal strength. That is, a wall outlet may bepaired with the central controller that receives the wall outlet'ssignal at the highest signal strength.

In an alternative embodiment, the content management server may pairwall outlets and central controllers based on lowest error rates,whether wall outlets support certain communication protocol versionnumbers, along with other options. In certain alternative embodiments,the content management server may associate central controllers withwall outlets in order to balance the load of wall outlets serviced bythe different central controllers. For example, when a first centralcontroller is able to communicate with twenty wall outlets and a secondcentral controller is able to communicate with ten wall outlets and fiveof the wall outlets can communicate with both the first and secondcentral controller, the content management server will associate thefive common wall outlets with the second central controller such thatfifteen wall outlets are assigned to the first central controller andten wall outlets are assigned to the second central controller. Further,other devices such as energy controls and sensors may also communicatewith central controllers to send/receive information from a controllerto the contact management system. Through these embodiments describedabove and below, wall outlets are able to provide connection informationto a content management server.

FIGS. 1A and 1B illustrate different implementations for acquiringconnection information from wall outlets 102 equipped with low energywireless technology to a content management server 106. As illustratedin FIG. 1A, a wall outlet 102 may be equipped with a low energy wirelesstechnology, through which the wall outlet 102 may communicate with otherdevices. For example, the wall outlet 102 may be able to communicatethrough technologies that may include Bluetooth, Bluetooth low energy(BLE), Zigbee, or other personal area network technology. The walloutlet 102 may connect to a central controller 104 through the lowenergy wireless technology.

In certain implementations, the central controller 104 may be adedicated central controller 104A that receives connection informationfrom the wall outlet 102. When the central controller receivesinformation from the wall outlet, the central controller may communicatethrough a TCP/IP interface to communicate the connection information toa content management server 106. The content management server 106 thenmay provide the information to a user through a user interface 108.Also, the content management server 106 may communicate through thededicated central controller 104A with the wall outlet 102. For example,the central controller 104 may communicate to a wall outlet 102 having aunique address such as an IEEE802 compliant MAC address, a randomlygenerated link layer address, a periodically changing random addresswith device pairing for privacy, an address derived from identifiers forat least one of the outlet and plugs connected therein, and the like.Alternatively, the central controller 104 may be virtualized in a PCworkstation 104B, where the central controller 104 runs as a task in thebackground to communicate connection information received from an outletto a content management system. In such an implementation, a localpersonal computer (PC) in an area near the wall outlet may function as acentral controller while not functioning as a dedicated central device.Thus, a subset of PCs in an area may be assigned to function as centralcontrollers and gather information from the wall outlets and provide theinformation to the content management server through a TCP/IPconnection.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a control stack for a wall outletmicrocontroller 200 and one implementation of a plug for insertion intothe wall outlet. In certain implementations, the outlet microcontroller200 receives power through power source 202. Power source 202 mayprovide power to the outlet microcontroller 200 through a battery (suchas a coin cell or other type of battery), power over Ethernet (PoE), orby adapting power received through a mains power as understood by thosehaving skill in the art. The outlet microcontroller 200 uses theprovided power to drive the several components in the outletmicrocontroller 200.

The outlet microcontroller 200 further includes a memory 208. In atleast one implementation, the memory 208 may be a static memory (such asan I2C or single wire EEPROM or Flash memory), however other types ofmemory (e.g. dynamic random access memory) may be used. The memory 208may store information describing the outlet 200. For example, the memory208 may store a identifier, type of outlet/model number, serial number,number of ports, vendor, manufacture date, manufacture plant, possiblelocation, among other information that may be helpful to a usermonitoring the wall outlet 200. In at least one implementation, theinformation in the memory 208 may be transmitted to a central controllerover a wireless network during the initialization of the connection ofthe wall outlet 200 to a central controller. Further, the information inthe memory 208 may be broadcast periodically by the wall outlet 200through a wireless communication interface 214. Alternatively, theinformation in the memory 208 may be transmitted by the outlet processor204 through the wireless communication interface 214 to a specificaddress of the central controller upon reception of a request from thecentral controller.

In a further implementation, the outlet microcontroller 200 may includea system on chip (SOC) 210. The SOC 210 includes a processing unit 212and a wireless communication interface 214. The processing unit 212 maybe a basic processor. Alternatively, the processing unit 212 may be aspecialized processor or other type of processing unit. Further, the SOC210 may include a PAN or wireless communication interface 214. The SOC210 may communicate with a central controller through the wirelesscommunication interface (or system) 214. In certain implementations, thewireless communication interface 214 is capable of communicating througha variety of wireless standards such as a BLE/IoT wireless interface 216or an IEEE802.15.4 compliant interface 218. Also, the wirelesscommunication interface 214 may communicate through other wirelesscommunication interface suitable for implementation in personal areanetworks. The wireless communication interface 214 may also communicateaccording to other wireless standards known to one having skill in theart. The processing unit 212 may be a microprocessor, microcontroller,digital signal processor, application specific integrated circuit, gatearray and/or any other device capable of providing the desiredprocessing.

In certain embodiments, as part of these communications received throughthe wireless communication interface 214 from the central controller,the processing unit 212 processes commands received from the centralcontroller that instruct the processing unit 212 how to control theoutlet LEDs through LED drivers 220. The LED drivers 220 use the powerreceived through the power source 202 to drive any outlet LEDs.Accordingly, when a connector plug is inserted into a port in theoutlet, the connector plug may transmit a message to the centralcollector through the wireless interface 214 indicating that aparticular port in the outlet has a connection. The outletmicrocontroller 200 may then receive a message from the centralcontroller dictating how the outlet microcontroller 200 should drive theLED associated with the connected port to correctly represent the statusof the associated connected outlet port. The outlet microcontroller 200then sends signals to the LED drivers 220 to correctly drive LEDs asdesired. For example, the LEDs may be driven such that they are turnedon or off, have the color change, flash according to a specific cadence,or other desired LED behaviour as directed by a content managementserver.

In at least one implementation, for example, when the outlet receivespower through PoE, a personal area network (PAN) interface (or system)of a connector inserted into a receptacle of an outlet may be powered bythe PoE; this facilitates the PAN interface of the connector tocommunicate, e.g. with the PAN interface of the outlet or of a dedicatedcentral controller 104A. Further, as power is provided by the PoE, themonitoring of the insertion or removal of connector plugs from an outletport may be reliant on the power that is provided by the outlet to theconnector. In the event that the outlet loses power, the connector plugsthat are inserted into the outlet ports may determine that they haveexperienced a removal event, where a removal event is the determinationthat a connecter plug has been removed from their associated port due tothe loss of power provided to the connector plugs through the outlet.When the connector plugs determine that a removal event has occurred,the connector plugs may transmit a removal message to the centralcollector. Conversely, when the outlet power is restored, therestoration of power to the outlet and through the outlet to theconnector plugs inserted into the ports may cause the connector plugs todetermine that an insertion has occurred. Upon detecting the restorationof power as an insertion event, the connector plugs may transmit aninsertion message to the collection device.

When outlets receive their power from connectors or mains power, theoutlets may be subject to power events, such as the loss of power to theoutlet and a subsequent restoration of power to the outlet. These powerevents may result in the transmission of false insertion and removalmessages, e.g. as illustrated above. In a high density system havingmultiple outlets, a power event may result in the transmission of largenumbers of spurious insertion and removal events due to the simultaneousloss and restoration of power at the different outlets in the system. Assuch, a large number of connectors may simultaneously transmit removalor insertion messages, which may lead to congestion in the wirelessnetwork and inaccurate connection status in the management system. Incertain implementations, to prevent congestion from occurring, theoutlet may also be equipped with an energy storage unit such as a supercapacitor or battery to keep the outlet powered up for a limited periodof time.

FIG. 2 further illustrates one possible implementation of a connector(or connector plug) 230 that could be coupled into a port in the walloutlet controlled by outlet microcontroller 200. A connector 230 mayterminate a cable used as a physical medium for the transmission ofinformation. For example, the connector plug 230 may couple to anoptical fiber, coaxial cable, CAT-5 cable, CAT6A cable, CAT7 cable, CAT8cable, or other cable that is able to function as a physical medium forthe transmission of data. An outlet port may include contacts 211 forconnecting to a connector plug 230. The contacts 232 may be capable ofcoupling power and data between the connector plug 230 and the outletmicrocontroller 200. For example, the connector plug 230 may be coupledto the outlet 200 through the contacts 211 such that information andpossibly power are communicated between the outlet microcontroller 200and the connector plug 230.

In certain embodiments, the connector plug 230 is able to communicatephysical layer information or information that can be used for managingthe connectivity of a system through a wireless communication interface238. The wireless communication link 238 may communicate connectivityinformation to a central controller, which central controller may be adedicated central controller or a PC or other computational deviceexecuting central controller software. In certain implementations, theconnector plug 230 includes contacts 232 that couple with the contacts211 of the outlet microcontroller 200 to receive or provide data andpower from/to the outlet microcontroller 200.

In exemplary implementations, the connector plug 230 includes a systemon chip (SOC) 234. The SOC 234 includes a processing unit 236 and awireless communication interface 238. The wireless communicationinterface 238 may include a BLE/IOT communication interface 240, anIEEE802.15.4 compliant communication interface 242, or other wirelesscommunication interface. As illustrated, the wireless communicationinterface 238 shows the BLE/IOT communication interface 240 and anIEEE802.15.4 compliant communication interface 242. In addition to theillustrated communication interfaces, the wireless communicationinterface 238 may include communication interfaces for communicatingaccording to other wireless communication standards known to one havingskill in the art beyond what is illustrated in FIG. 2. In certainimplementations, upon inserting the connector plug 230 into the outletport, the connector plug 230 may obtain electrical power from the outlet200. The SOC 234 may then detect the presence of power as an insertionevent and begins to read the memory 208 associated with the outlet 200.Once the SOC 234 reads the information from the memory 208, the SOC 234may format a message and send the connectivity information to thecentral collector via the wireless communication interface 238. When theplug is removed, the SOC 234 detects the loss of power and sends adisconnect message to the management workstation or aggregation device.To provide power for transmission of the disconnect message, theconnector plug 230 may include an energy storage device 244 such as abattery or a capacitor. The energy storage device 244 may be charged bypower received from the outlet port 200. The energy storage device 244may store enough energy to keep the SOC 234 operational for a period oftime after removal from the outlet.

In certain implementations, the connector plug 230 may also include amemory device similar to the memory 208 in the outlet port. When thecable connector plug 230 is inserted in an outlet port, the SOC 234receives power and initializes. During initialization, the SOC 234 mayread information from the memory device in the connector plug 230. Theinformation stored in the memory device may include cableidentification, cable subID, category, rating, polarity, color, length,insert count, country of manufacture, serial number, catalogue number,date of manufacture, manufacturer identification, plant identification,software version, hardware version, and other information that may beuseful for managing the connectivity of the cable. The SOC 234 may thenread information in the memory 208 to obtain port information. Incertain implementation, the combination of the connector pluginformation and the outlet port information may be immediately broadcastthrough the wireless communication interface 238 over a network as aninsertion event. Alternatively, the information may be transmittedperiodically, or transmitted in response to a query by a centralcontroller. When the connector plug 230 is removed from the port plug200, the connector plug 230 may remain active for a period of time,during which period of time, the connector plug 230 may issue adisconnect event, where the disconnect event indicates a portidentification, cable identification, and a cable subID associated withthe disconnection. Further, the connector plug 230 may include a barcodeto facilitate the physical identification of the connector plug. In analternative implementation, the connector may include a memory devicethat is read by the SOC 210, upon insertion of the connector into a portin the outlet. The memory may store information as described above.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a network 300 having multiple outlets302 in communication with a central controller 304. As shown, theoutlets 302 function substantially similar to the outlets describedabove with respect to FIGS. 1 and 2. As shown, the outlets 302 are incommunication with an intermediate distribution frame (IDF). Asdescribed above, a central controller 304 may function as a bridgebetween the low energy wireless technology implemented in the outlets302 and a TCP/IP interface using Ethernet. When the central controller304 acts as the bridge between the different technologies, the centralcontroller 304 may send connection information to a central contentmanagement system or server. Such a server may be, but does not have tobe, implemented with Cloud computing system (a Cloud). In certainimplementations, the central content management system or server alsofunctions as the central controller 304 and is able to communicatedirectly with the outlets 302 while functioning as the central contentserver. Further, a central controller 304 may be able to serve as an802.11 WiFi Access Point to provide connectivity for devices such as awireless printer or other mobile devices. For example, as illustrated,the central controller 304 is able to communicate with sensors 306 andpower/lighting control 308.

In certain embodiments, the central controller 304 may be a singlededicated central controller that receives connection information fromthe SoCs of multiple wall outlets 302. When the central controllerreceives information from multiple wall outlets, the central controller304 may employ a location service to help with load balancing so thatthe central controller is not overwhelmed from communications beingtransmitted all at once. For example, the central controller 304 maymonitor the received signal strength indications (RSSI) for the multiplewall outlets 302, the central controller may use other location servicesas well. Based on the location information of the wall outlets 302, thecentral controller 304 may handle information received from differentsubsets of the wall outlets 302 at different times.

FIG. 4 is a drawing illustrating a network 400 having multiple outlets402 in communication with multiple central controllers 404 In at leastone implementation, at initialization time, central controllers 404 (bethey local dedicated controllers or virtualized central controllersexecuting on PCs) may collect signal and other device information forthe wall outlets 402 that are visible to the central controllers 404.For example, the central controllers 404 may collect information such assignal strength, error rate, delay, and other device information asdescribed above. The central controllers 404 then may pass theinformation on to a content management server. The content managementserver may use the information to pair central controllers 404 withcertain wall outlets 402. For example, the central management system maypair central controllers 404 with wall outlets based on signal strength.That is, a wall outlet 402 may be paired with the central controller 404that receives the wall outlet's signal at the highest signal strength.Alternatively, the central controllers 404 may be paired with walloutlets 402 based on the location of the outlets 402 in relation to therespective central controllers 404.

In an alternative embodiment, a content management server may pair walloutlets 402 and central controllers 404 based on lowest error rates,whether wall outlets 404 support certain communication protocol versionnumbers, along with other options. In certain alternative embodiments, acontent management server may associate central controllers 404 withwall outlets 402 in order to balance the load of wall outlets 402serviced by the different central controllers 404. For example, asillustrated, a first central controller 404 in the central controllers404 is able to communicate with six of the eight wall outlets 402 and asecond central controller 404 in the central controllers 402 is able tocommunicate with four of the eight wall outlets 402. As illustrated, twoof the wall outlets 402 are in communication with both the first andsecond central controllers 404. In order to balance the load of thedifferent central controllers 404, a content management server mayassign the two wall outlets that are in communication with both thefirst and second central controllers 404 to communicate with the secondcentral controller 404. As such, both the first and second centralcontrollers 404 are then each in communication with four outlets 402.

FIG. 5 is a drawing illustrating screens of a mobile device 500 showinga user interface in communication with either of the outlets, thecentral controller, or the content management server. For example, amobile device 500 may communicate directly with the outlets through thelow energy wireless interface on the outlets. Alternatively, the mobiledevice 500 may communicate with the central controller or the contentmanagement server through a low energy wireless interface, a TCP/IPconnection, a web services interface such as SOAP, REST, over HTTPprotocol, a hard wired connection, and the like. Further, in certainimplementations, a wall outlet may include a switch that is accessibleto a user. When the switch is turned on, either by pressing it down inthe event the switch is a button or by toggling the switch, the walloutlet may be identified at the central collector, content managementserver, and displayed on the mobile device 500. Further, the outlets mayalso have LEDs located on a face plate or on the connector plug insertedinto the wall outlet such that when a particular connector plug isselected at the central collector, content management server, or mobiledevice, the LED associated with the particular outlet may becomeilluminated.

In certain implementations, when a user selects the connector plugthrough a human machine interface on one of the central collector, thecontent management server, or a mobile device 500, such as HMI 502 onmobile device 500, an LED may be illuminated on the selected outlet orconnector plug inserted into the selected outlet to aid the user infinding the desired connector plug. For example, a microcontroller inthe outlet may receive a command from the central collector through awireless interface on the connector plug to illuminate an LED on theselected outlet. When in a BLE or 802.15 direct connection with themobile device 500, the wall outlet may also receive the command directlyfrom the mobile device 500.

In a further implementation, the human machine interface 502 may displaymultiple user selectable fields where each field is associated with adifferent outlet in a network that implements managed connectivity. Whena user selects one of the fields in the human machine interface 502, anLED on the connector plug associated with the user selectable field maybecome illuminated. For example, as illustrated, a user may select theuser selectable field associated with the outlet with ID number123456789003.01. When the user selects the field, the LED on the outletassociated with ID number 1234456789003.01 will be illuminated.

FIG. 6 is a flow diagram of a method 600 for communicating informationfrom an outlet to a content management server through a wirelesscommunication interface. To the extent that the embodiments of methodsherein are described herein as being implemented in the systemsdescribed herein, it is to be understood that other embodiments can beimplemented in other ways. The blocks of the flow diagram shown in FIG.6 have been arranged in a generally sequential manner for ease ofexplanation; however, it is to be understood that this arrangement ismerely exemplary, and it should be recognized that the processingassociated with method 600 (and the blocks shown in FIG. 6) can occur ina different order (for example, where at least some of the processingassociated with the blocks is performed in parallel and/or in anevent-driven manner). Also, most standard exception handling is notdescribed for ease of explanation; however, it is to be understood thatmethod 600 can and typically would include such exception handling.

The method 600 proceeds at 602 where connectivity information isidentified at an outlet for use by a content management server. Forexample, a plug may be inserted at an outlet. A SoC located at theoutlet may identify the connectivity information stored in a memorydevice either in the outlet or in the plug connected to, e.g. areceptacle of, the outlet. Method 600 proceeds at 604, where theconnectivity information is transmitted to a central controller over oneor more wireless communication interfaces. For instance, the SoC locatedat the outlet transmits the connectivity information to a centralcontroller through a low energy wireless interface. For example, the lowenergy wireless interface may transmit the information through aBluetooth, BLE, or IEEE802.15.4 compliant wireless interface. In certainimplementations, the central controller may be a general purposecomputer. Alternatively, the central controller may be a dedicatedcentral controlling device. Optionally, method 600 proceeds at 606,where the connectivity information is provided to the content managementserver from the central controller; as discussed above the contentmanagement server and the central controller may be one in the same. Forexample, after receiving the connectivity information from the outletsthrough a low energy wireless interface, a central controller maytransmit the connectivity information to the content management serverthrough a TCP/IP network, and/or through a web services interface suchas SOAP, REST, over HTTP protocol. Thus, the content manager serverreceives the connectivity information from the outlet and other outletsand is able manage the connectivity of the outlets and plugs connectedtherein because of the information communicated through the low energywireless interfaces.

An augmented reality (AR) device may be used with the networks describedabove, e.g. with respect to FIGS. 3 and 4. For pedagogical purposes, theAR device subsequently illustrated is implemented using intelligenteyeglasses. The AR device may be implemented in other ways, for exampleusing another type of wearable AR device, or using a device with ascreen (e.g. a tablet or smartphone) in a manner as would be used forGoogle Goggles®. When using the screen, an augmented reality overlay maybe projected over or by a real image (viewed directly as with GoogleGlass® or captured by an image capture system as with Google Googles®).A real image means an image of one or more real objects. It is to beunderstood that any type of AR device can be used, including, withoutlimitation, wearable devices (such as devices using 3Dholographic-lenses) and non-wearable devices. Thus, it will beappreciated that the AR device may be used to in lieu of or may be themobile device 500.

Google Glass® is an application for portable devices such as smartphones and tables that generates an augmented reality overlay over acaptured real image captured by the portable device. Google Glass® is aproduct that implements mobile computing technology into a pair ofeyeglasses such as a pair of glasses to provide “intelligent” glasses.The individual wearing the pair of intelligent eyeglasses may inputinformation via voice commands that are received through a microphone onthe intelligent eyeglasses. Information about outlet(s) may be displayedto a user, e.g. a technician. The technician can confirm or modify suchdata by, for example, a voice command that is received via a microphoneof the intelligent eyeglasses and used to update a remote database (e.g.part of the content management server) and/or the data stored a thecorresponding outlet.

FIG. 7 illustrates a block diagram of one embodiment of an AR device770. The AR device 770 comprises an image capture system 772, aninput/output (I/O) system 774, a wireless communications system 776, atleast one processor (processor) 773, and at least one memory (memory)775. Each of the image capture system 772, the I/O system 774, thewireless communications system 776, and the at least one memory 775 arecoupled to the at least one processor 773. Optionally, the AR device 770includes a sensor system 778 coupled to the at least one processor 773.

The wireless communications system 776 may include communicationssystem(s) to communicate over a local area network (e.g. an IEEE802.11compliant communications system) and/or over a personal area network(e.g. an IEEE802.15.4 compliant, a Bluetooth, and/or BLE communicationssystems). The sensor system 779 may be a global navigation satellitesystem receiver and/or inertial sensors used to determine, e.g. possiblyusing the software 779, the location of the AR device 770.

The at least one processor 773 comprises processor circuitry which mayinclude at least one of microcontroller(s), microprocessor(s), digitalsignal processor(s), gate array(s), and application specific integratedcircuit(s). The at least one memory 775 comprises memory circuitry whichmay include at least one of random access memory, read only memory,Flash memory, magnetic memory such as hard drive(s), and optical memorysuch as optical disc(s) and optical read and/or writing devices.

The I/O system 774 includes a display system, e.g. a projection system,and optionally a speaker and/or a microphone. Using the display system,the AR device 770 is configured to render and display an augmentedreality overlay image (or augmented reality overlay), e.g. that issuperimposed over the user's view of the real word for example as usedin Google Glass®. Alternatively, the display system may be a display,e.g. of a portable device for example used with Google Googles®.

The projection system, for example, may be a projector which projects anaugmented reality overlay with a prism that directs the AR overlay ontothe retina of the user, e.g. the wearer of the AR device 770. The ARoverlay is effectively projected over a real image viewed with the eyesof the user of the AR device 770. The image capture system 772 is usedto capture an image of what the user is current looking at with the ARdevice 770. The image capture system 772 may be one or more cameras. TheAR device 770 may be configured to zoom in or out (either optically ordigitally) when capturing images using the image capture system 772;such zooming may be facilitated by image processing software 779B. Whenthe AR device 770 is a portable device with a display, rather thanintelligent eyeglasses, the AR overlay is displayed over the real imagecaptured by the image capture system 772.

The at least one processor 773 is programmable and executes softwareand/or firmware (collectively software 779), e.g. stored in the at leastone memory 775. The software 779 comprises program instructions that arestored (or otherwise embodied) on an appropriate non-transitory storagemedium or media, i.e. the at least one memory 775, from which at least aportion of the program instructions are read by the processor 773 forexecution thereby. The software 779 is configured to cause the at leastone processor 773 to carry out at least some of the operations describedhere as being performed by that AR device 770. Although the at least onememory 775 is shown in FIG. 7 as being included in the AR device 770, itis to be understood that at least a portion of the at least one memory775 can be located remotely (for example, storage media that isaccessible over a network such as for example the content managementserver 106) and/or can be removable memory media.

The software 779 comprises AR software 779A, image processing software779B, and/or indoor-positioning software 779C. The AR software 779A isconfigured to render the AR overlay that is superimposed over the user'sview of the real word. In this example, at least a part of the ARsoftware 779A executes on the at least one processor 773. However, it isto be understood that at least a part of the AR software 779A can beimplemented on a device other than the AR device 770 (for example, thecontent management server 106).

The image processing software 779B executes, at least in part, on the atleast one processor 773 included in the AR device 770. However, it is tobe understood that at least a part of the image processing software 779Bcan be implemented on a device other than the AR device 770 (forexample, the content management server 106).

The image processing software 779B is configured to identify and decodean identifier that is associated with one or more outlets. For example,the image processing software 779B can be configured to capture theidentifier even when it is part of a larger image.

The indoor-positioning software 779C is optional. The indoor-positionssoftware is configured to determine the location of the AR device 770within a map of a relevant site and the orientation of the AR device 770(more specifically, the orientation of the image-capture device 770).Based upon the determined location and orientation (e.g. provided by theoptional sensor system 778 and/or the wireless communications system 776using an external personal area network positioning system), theindoor-positioning software 779C may determine which outlet(s) areexpected to be within the field of view of the image capture system 772and/or the AR device 770, and corresponding identifier(s) for theexpected outlet(s). The indoor-positioning software 779C can then beused to identify outlet(s) in an image captured by the AR device 770 inlieu of using marker(s) of the outlet(s), can be used to verify themarker(s), or can be used to guide a user to a desired outlet.

FIG. 8 illustrates one embodiment of a user utilizing an augmentedreality device to identify and view information about an outlet 800. Theuser 881, e.g. a technician, wears an augmented reality device,augmented reality glasses 870, and views an outlet 884 having a marker882 in the field of view 883 of the augmented reality glasses 870. Theoutlet has ports (or receptacles) 886 into which cables can be plugged.As will be subsequently illustrated the AR device displays (to the userwearing the AR device) information about the outlet 884.

FIG. 9 illustrates one embodiment of augmented reality eye glasses 900.The augmented reality glasses 900 include an I/O system 974 (e.g. asdescribed above for the AR device 770). The augmented reality eyeglasses900 may also include an image capture system 972 (e.g. a camera), atleast one processor 973, at least one memory 975, software, and awireless communications system 976 (e.g. as described above for the ARdevice 770).

Returning to FIG. 8, each outlet, for example, can have a uniqueidentifier, e.g. displayed with the marker 882. For example, the uniqueidentifier may be generated from one or more unique media accesscontroller addresses of communications device(s) of the wirelesscommunication interface 214 for a unique outlet, or other systemidentifier(s). The other identifier(s) can be generated from a uniqueserial number assigned to the outlet in a database, and/or can begenerated, e.g. by the content management server 106. In one example,each marker 882 comprises a bar code, QR code, and/or text. Each marker882 can be implemented, for example, using a printed adhesive label, anelectronic display device (for example, a liquid crystal or E-inkdisplay), and/or using one or more light emitting diodes (LEDs) that arestrobed to encode an identifier (for example, using Morse code oranother communications scheme). The marker 882 can be part of or placedby a corresponding outlet.

Returning to FIG. 7, in one implementation, the AR device 770 isconfigured to automatically detect and decode any identifiers incaptured images, e.g. using image processing software 779B. For example,the image processing software 779B is configured to continuously scanfor markers 882, and to digitally zoom in on the captured images of suchmarkers 882. Alternatively the AR device 770 is configured to detect anddecode any identifiers in a captured image including a marker 882 inresponse to an input from the user; for example, such detection anddecoding may be in response to a user (a) selecting or activating abutton displayed as a part of the user interface for the AR device 770or (b) issuing a verbal command detected by a microphone of the ARdevice 770.

The AR device 770 and/or a remote system, such as the content managementserver 106, can use the decoded identifier to obtain information aboutthe corresponding outlet(s). The remote system may be a dedicated serveror a Cloud computing system. If a remote system is used to decode theidentifier, the undecoded identifier is sent to the remote system by theAR device 770. If the remote system is used to obtain information aboutthe corresponding outlet(s), the undecoded identifier or the informationextracted from the decoded identifier (depending if the remote systemdecodes the identifier or not) is sent to the remote system by the ARdevice 770. The remote system then provides information about thecorresponding outlet(s) to AR device 770. A central controller and thewireless communications system 776 may be used to facilitate suchcommunications, e.g. by wireless local networking.

Optionally, the outlet and/or the remote system electronically store theidentifier of a corresponding outlet, e.g. in the memory 208.Optionally, the AR device 770 can send its location to the remotesystem, e.g. the content management server 106, and receive from theremote system the identifier (and/or information—for example assubsequently described—about the corresponding outlet necessary to forma communications link between the outlet and the AR device 770).

Upon receiving the identifier, e.g. that has been decoded by the imageprocessing software 779B, the software 779 can extract data, e.g. amedia access controller address, service set identifier, password,and/or other data that permits the wireless communications system 776 toform a wireless communications link between the AR device 770 and thewall outlet. Alternatively, the wireless communications system 776 maytransmit, e.g. by IEEE802.11 compliant communications, the identifier toa remote system, e.g. the content management server 106, and receivefrom the remote system such data that permits the wirelesscommunications system 776 to form the communications link with theoutlet corresponding to the identifier.

The communications link between the AR device 770 and the outlet mayuse, e.g. IEEE802.15.4 compliant, IEEE802.11 compliant, Bluetooth, orBLE communications. Upon forming a communications link between the ARdevice 770 and the outlet (e.g. in the AR device's field of view), theAR device 770 can obtain information about that particular outlet fromthe outlet and display such information to the user.

Also, alternatively, the outlet may communicate information about itselfto a remote system, e.g. the content management server 106. The ARdevice 770 may display information (in the form of an augmented realityoverlay) about the outlet (obtained directly from the outlet and/or theremote system) to the user using the display system of the I/O system774. Optionally, the AR device 770 may additionally or alternativelyform, e.g. an IEEE802.11 compliant, communications link with the remotesystem, e.g. the content server 106; the remote system can provideadditional information related to a specific outlet (e.g. about cablesplugged into receptacles of the outlet, about hardware connected by thecables to the receptacles of the outlet, about a correspondingdistribution frame, PoE information, virtual local area networkinformation, and/or other information about the outlet and componentscoupled to the outlet) which may not be stored in the correspondingoutlet.

FIG. 10 is an illustration of one embodiment of a view by a user of anoutlet, a marker, and an augmented reality overlay 1000. The outlet 1084and marker 1082 are on a surface of a structure, e.g. a wall or anequipment enclosure. For pedagogical reasons, the structure will besubsequently illustrated as wall. The illustrated images of the outlet1084 and marker 1082 on a wall 1083 are images of real objects. The ARoverlay 1002 is an image generated by the AR device 770 and/or theremote system, and superimposed on the image of a real object, e.g. theimage of the wall 1083. For pedagogical purposes, the AR overlay 1002 ofFIG. 10 is illustrated as show outlet related information such as outletpower source information 1002A. The power source 202 is described above,and for pedagogical reasons is illustrated as a battery. The outletpower source information 1002A shown in FIG. 10 illustrates batterylevel (by an amount and color). For example, a color green can be usedto show the battery level is above a first threshold level, e.g. seventypercent; a red color can be used to show the battery level is below asecond threshold level, e.g. thirty percent; and/or an amber color canbe used to show that the battery level is between the first and secondthresholds. The outlet related information may also include outletlocation 1002, and/or outlet specifications 1002C, e.g. outlet type,number of receptacles in the outlet, outlet date of manufacture, outletmanufacturer, manufacturing plant where the outlet was made, outletsoftware version, and/or outlet hardware version.

FIG. 11 is an illustration of another embodiment of a view by a user ofan outlet, a marker, and an augmented reality overlay 1100. Theillustrated outlet 1184 and the marker 1182 on the wall 1183 are againimages of real objects. The augmented reality overlay 1102 issuperimposed on the images of the real objects, e.g. on the image of thewall 1183. The illustrated border of the augmented reality projection1102 is shown only to identify the augmented reality overlay 1102, andwould not be seen in actuality by a user. For pedagogical purposes, theaugmented reality overlay 1102 of FIG. 11 is illustrated to show port(or receptacle) information. A first indicator 1102A denotes that afirst receptacle (adjacent to the first indicator) may have a problem,e.g. may not be operational. The second indicator 1102B indicates that asecond, unused receptacle (adjacent to the second indicator) has afunctional or working data connection. The third indicator 1102Cindicates that the second receptacle is powered by power over Ethernet(PoE) from a remote source coupled to the second receptacle.

FIG. 12 is an illustration of yet another embodiment of a view by a userof an outlet, a marker, and an augmented reality projection 1200. Theoutlet 1284 and marker 1282 on a wall 1283 are again images of realobjects. The augmented reality overlay 1202 is superimposed on theimages of the real objects, e.g. over the outlet 1284 and the wall 1283.For example, a first indicator 1202C is superimposed over acorresponding receptacle. The second indicator 1202A may be superimposedover the wall 1283. The illustrated border of the augmented realityoverlay 1202 is shown only to identify the augmented reality overlay1202, and need is not part of the augmented reality overlay 1202.

For pedagogical purposes, the augmented reality projection 1202 of FIG.12 is illustrated to show port (or receptacle) usage information. Thefirst indicator 1202C over a corresponding real receptacle denotes thatan unused, third receptacle (covered by the indicator) has a functionalor working data connection. The second indicator 1202A providesinformation about the cable connected to the third receptacle; suchcable information may include a cable identifier, a cable subidentifier(e.g. identifying cable end), cable category (e.g. Cat5, Cat 6 Cat 6A,Cat 7, Cat 8, single mode, or multimode), cable rating (e.g. unshielded,shielded F/UTP, Shielded S/FTP, OM1, OM2, OM3, or OM4), cable polarity(e.g. 568A, 568B, A to A, or A to B), cable length, cable insertioncount, catalog number, and/or date of cable manufacture. The thirdindicator 1202B is an optional connection line between the firstindicator 1202A and the second indicator 1202C to identify that theinformation of the second indicator 1202C corresponds to a cableinserted into the third receptacle. The cable information can beobtained from a remote system, e.g. the content management server 106,or directly from the outlet.

The outlet can include mechanical switches and/or electrical circuitry(which may be part of or connected to the SoC 210) to detect when cablesare inserted and/or removed from a receptacle in the outlet, and toobtain information about the cable (e.g. from a data system of a smartcable). Further, the AR device 770 can show in real time when a cable isplugged into and unplugged from a receptacle of an outlet by changingthe color of receptacle or of an icon next to the receptacle, and/ordisplaying information about the cable next to the receptacle. Theoutlet generates information indicating such plugging and unplugging ofcables, and shares that information with the AR device 770 and/or aremote system, e.g. the content management server 106. The AR device 770may receive such information from the content management server 106, ordirectly from the outlet. Such information shared with the AR device 770is used to cause the AR device to display visual indicator(s) ofchanging port status and/or cable information in an augmented realityprojection.

Optionally, receptacle status and/or cable information illustrated abovemay be selectively obtained by a user, e.g. a technician, by theirselecting an outlet and one or more receptacles of the outlet. Suchselection may be achieved by vocal command, e.g. into the microphone ofthe AR device 770, by touching a portion of a screen or viewed imagecorresponding to the desired outlet and/or the receptacle(s). Forexample, the image processing software 779B may also be configured toidentify gestures that are performed by the user of the AR device 1312(such as “touching” particular objects (virtual or real) displayed inthe user's field of view.

The augmented reality device 770 can also be used to verify successfulinstallation of an outlet and corresponding marker. Upon installation,of the outlet and marker, the AR device 770 would attempt to form acommunications link with the newly installed outlet. If the markerincludes information to form a personal area communications link, the ARdevice 770 will extract such information (as described above) and form apersonal area communications link with the outlet. The AR device 770will indicate, e.g. with an error message, that the marker is incorrectwhen the AR device 770 is unable to extract data with information toform a communications link between the corresponding outlet and the ARdevice 770. Optionally, the user, e.g. the installer, can use the ARdevice 770 to enter the location of the outlet, e.g. in latitude,longitude, and altitude or building, floor, room, and room location.Then, the user, e.g. installer, using the AR device 770 can use the ARdevice to verify operation of the outlet, e.g. detection of cableinsertion and removal from receptacle(s), receptacle status, batterystatus, and/or information about cable(s) inserted into receptacle(s) ofthe outlet.

FIG. 13 comprises a flow chart illustrating one exemplary embodiment ofa method 1300 of using an AR device to assist with identifyinginformation about an outlet. Such information, for example, may beinformation about the outlet, its receptacle(s), and cable(s) insertedinto the receptacle(s). The exemplary embodiment of method 1300 shown inFIG. 13 is described here as being implemented using the AR device, anoutlet, and/or a remote system.

To the extent that the embodiments of methods herein are describedherein as being implemented in the systems described herein, it is to beunderstood that other embodiments can be implemented in other ways. Theblocks of the flow diagram shown in FIG. 13 have been arranged in agenerally sequential manner for ease of explanation; however, it is tobe understood that this arrangement is merely exemplary, and it shouldbe recognized that the processing associated with method 1300 (and theblocks shown in FIG. 13) can occur in a different order (for example,where at least some of the processing associated with the blocks isperformed in parallel and/or in an event-driven manner). Also, moststandard exception handling is not described for ease of explanation;however, it is to be understood that method 1300 can and typically wouldinclude such exception handling.

Optionally, in block 1302, form a communications link with a contentmanagement server. In block 1304, obtain, at an augmented realitydevice, communications data configured to be used to form communicationslink with the outlet. Such communications data, e.g. a media accesscontroller address, service set identifier, password, and/or other datathat permits the wireless communications system of the AR device to forma wireless communications link with a communications system of theoutlet.

In one embodiment, block 1304 may be implemented by detecting a marker(e.g. by detecting an identifier on a marker that is by or on an outlet)in an image captured by an AR device. The AR device is configured sothat the detecting the identifier in the images captured by the ARdevice automatically or in response to an input from the user. Forpedagogical reasons, the embodiment will be described by having theidentifier detected in response to an input from the user. The user canmanipulate the AR device so as to position the marker in the field ofview of an image capture system, zoom in so that the details of theidentifier of the marker are visible with sufficient resolution, andthen select or activate a button in order to cause the image processingsoftware to detect and decode the identifier. Where a marker comprises abarcode or QR code, the image processing software is configured withbarcode or QR-code scanning functionality suitable for detecting,identifying, and decoding bar or QR codes that are within the capturedimages. Then, the communications data is extracted from an image of themarker, e.g. by the image processing software 779C. Such communicationsdata, e.g. a media access controller address, service set identifier,password, and/or other data, permits the wireless communications systemof the AR device to form a wireless communications link with thewireless communications system of the outlet.

Alternatively, the AR device can ascertain its location when it isproximate to an outlet, and transmit the location data to a remotesystem, e.g. a content media server. For example, a user can select oractivate a button in order to cause the AR device to transmit itslocation to the content media server. The content media server then candetermine, e.g. from a database, the identifier or communications dataof the corresponding outlet. The content media server then transmits theidentifier or communications data to the AR device. If it receives theidentifier, e.g. from the content media server, the AR device thenextracts the communications data. Then, the AR device utilizes thereceived or extracted communications data to form a communications linkwith the outlet as described above. Optionally, in block 1306, detect,with the outlet, an insertion of a connector of a cable into and/orremoval of the connector of the cable from a receptacle of the outlet,and send such data to at least one of the AR device and the contentmanagement server.

In block 1308, using the communications data, form the communicationslink between the outlet and the AR device. In block 1310, obtain, fromthe outlet, status data about at least one of: the outlet, the outlet'sreceptacle(s), and cable(s) inserted into the outlet's receptacle(s).Such data may be data described elsewhere herein. Optionally, such datamay be obtained by a user, e.g. a technician, by selecting an outlet,outlet receptacle(s), and/or corresponding cable(s) of the outlet. Suchselection may be achieved by vocal command, e.g. into the microphone ofthe AR device, by touching a portion of a screen or viewed imagecorresponding to the desired outlet and/or the receptacle(s). Forexample, the image processing software is also configured to identifygestures that are performed by the user of the AR device (such as“touching” particular objects (virtual or real) displayed in the user'sfield of view. Further, such data may be sourced by the outlet or aremote system as described above. Optionally, block 1310 furthercomprises obtaining, from the at least one of the outlet and the contentmanagement server, information about at least one of: the outlet, theoutlet's receptacle(s), and cable(s) inserted into the outlet'sreceptacle(s). Optionally, block 1310 further compromises the AR deviceobtaining status data from at least one of the outlet and the contentmedia server.

In block 1312, render with the AR device, e.g. using the AR software779A, an augmented reality overlay including and/or indicative of thestatus data obtained in block 1308. In block 1314 display or project theaugmented reality overlay over or by a real image, e.g. captured by animage capture system or directly viewed, of the outlet. The renderedimage may, as described above, be projected with intelligent eyeglassesor displayed on a screen of a device. Optionally, if block 1306 isperformed, then block 1310 when rendering, with the AR device, theaugmented reality overlay include an indication the insertion and/orremoval the connector of the cable.

EXAMPLE EMBODIMENTS

Example 1 includes a system for providing connectivity management, thesystem comprising: a content management server configured to manageconnectivity for a network; one or more central controllers configuredto collect connectivity information for at least a portion of thenetwork for use by the content management server; and at least oneoutlet having one or more ports for receiving one or more plugs, whereinconnectivity information is communicated between the outlet and thecentral controller through one or more wireless communication interface.

Example 2 includes the system of Example 1, wherein the one or morewireless communication interfaces are at least one of: a Bluetoothnetwork interface; Bluetooth Low Energy network interface; and anIEEE802.15.4 compliant network interface.

Example 3 includes the system of any of Examples 1-2, wherein the outletcomprises an outlet microcontroller, the outlet microcontrollercomprising: a memory that stores connectivity information about theoutlet; and a system on chip comprising a processing unit and a wirelesscommunication interface in the one or more wireless communicationinterfaces.

Example 4 includes the system of Example 3, wherein the outlet furthercomprises: contacts for connecting to the one or more plug; at least oneLED, wherein the at least one LED is driven by the processing unit.

Example 5 includes the system of Example 4, wherein the processing unitdrives the at least one LED based on instructions received from the oneor more central controllers.

Example 6 includes the system of any of Examples 4-5, wherein thecontent management server directs the at least one LED to be illuminatedwhen a user selects a reference to an outlet in the at least one outletthat is associated with the at least one LED, wherein the reference isdisplayed on a human machine interface connected to the contentmanagement server.

Example 7 includes the system of any of Examples 3-6, wherein theprocessing unit receives connectivity information from the one or moreplugs, wherein the processing unit transmits the connectivityinformation to the central collector through the wireless communicationinterface.

Example 8 includes the system of any of Examples 3-7, wherein the outletmicrocontroller receives power from at least one of: a battery; powermains; and power over Ethernet.

Example 9 includes the system of any of Examples 3-8, wherein the outletmicrocontroller indicates to the one or more central controllers that aplug is inserted into the outlet.

Example 10 includes the system of any of Examples 1-9, wherein theoutlet provides connectivity information in response to a request fromthe one or more central controllers.

Example 11 includes the system of any of Examples 1-10, wherein atransmission through the one or more wireless communication interfaceshas a unique address that identifies one of the outlet and the pluralityof connector plugs that produced the transmission.

Example 12 includes the system of any of Examples 1-11, wherein the oneor more central controllers is at least one of: a personal computer; adedicated central controlling device; a part of the content managementserver; and a mobile device.

Example 13 includes the system of any of Examples 1-12, wherein the oneor more central controllers comprises: a collection wirelesscommunication interface for receiving the connectivity information thatis transmitted through the one or more wireless communication interfacesin the at least one outlet; a TCP/IP interface to provide theconnectivity information to the content management server through aTCP/IP network; and a web services interface.

Example 14 includes the system of any of Examples 1-13, wherein thecontent management server balances the number of outlets in the at leastone outlet that are in communication with each central controller in theone or more central controllers.

Example 15 includes the system of Example 14, wherein the contentmanagement server balances the number of outlets in communication witheach central controller based on at least one of: a received signalstrength indication; and location of the at least one outlet.

Example 16 includes the system of any of Examples 1-15, wherein the atleast one outlet comprises a switch that directs the content managementserver to provide a user with identifying information for the at leastone outlet when the switch is turned on.

Example 17 includes an outlet for providing connectivity information,the outlet comprising: one or more ports for receiving one or moreplugs; an outlet microcontroller, the outlet microcontroller comprising:a memory that stores connectivity information about the outlet; and asystem on chip comprising a processing unit and one or more wirelesscommunication interfaces, wherein, the processing unit transmits theconnectivity information regarding the outlet and the one or more plugsto a central controller through the one or more wireless communicationinterfaces.

Example 18 includes the outlet of Example 17, wherein the one or morewireless communication interfaces are at least one of: a Bluetoothnetwork interface; Bluetooth low energy network interface; and anIEEE802.15.4 compliant network interface.

Example 19 includes the outlet of any of Examples 17-18, wherein theoutlet further comprises at least one LED, wherein the at least one LEDis driven by the processing unit.

Example 20 includes the outlet of Example 19, wherein the processingunit drives the at least one LED based on instructions received from thecentral controller.

Example 21 includes the outlet of any of Examples 17-20, wherein theprocessing unit receives connectivity information from the one or moreplugs, wherein the processing unit transmits the connectivityinformation to the central collector through the wireless communicationinterface.

Example 22 includes the outlet of any of Examples 17-21, wherein theoutlet microcontroller receives power from at least one of: a battery;power mains; and power over Ethernet.

Example 23 includes the outlet of any of Examples 17-22, wherein theoutlet microcontroller indicates to the central controller that a plugis inserted into the outlet.

Example 24 includes the outlet of any of Examples 17-23, wherein theoutlet microcontroller provides connectivity information in response toa request from the central controller.

Example 25 includes a method for communicating connectivity information,the method comprising: identifying connectivity information at an outletfor use by a content management server; transmitting the connectivityinformation to a central controller over one or more wirelesscommunication interfaces; providing the connectivity information to thecontent management server from the central controller.

Example 26 includes the method of Example 25, wherein the one or morewireless communication interfaces are at least one of: a Bluetoothnetwork interface; Bluetooth low energy network interface; and anIEEE802.15.4 compliant network interface.

Example 27 includes the method of any of Examples 25-26, furthercomprising driving at least one LED at the outlet based on instructionsreceived from the central controller.

Example 28 includes the method of Example 27, wherein the contentmanagement server directs the at least one LED to be illuminated when auser selects a reference to an outlet that is associated with the atleast one LED, wherein the reference is displayed on a human machineinterface connected to the content management server.

Example 29 includes the method of any of Examples 25-28, wherein theoutlet indicates to the central controller that a plug is inserted intothe outlet.

Example 30 includes the method of any of Examples 25-29, wherein theoutlet provides connectivity information in response to a request fromthe central controller.

Example 31 includes the method of any of Examples 25-30, wherein atransmission through the one or more wireless communication interfaceshas a unique address that identifies the outlet as the source of thetransmission.

Example 32 includes the method of any of Examples 25-31, furthercomprising balancing the number of outlets in communication with thecentral controller in comparison to other central controllers incommunication with the content management server.

Example 33 includes the method of Example 32, wherein balancing thenumber of outlets is based on at least one of: a received signalstrength indication for outlets in communication with the centralcontrollers that are managed by the content management server; andlocation of the outlets in relation to the central controllers.

Example 34 includes the method of any of Examples 25-33, furthercomprising providing a user with identifying information for the outletwhen a switch on the outlet is actuated.

Example 35 includes the method of any of Examples 25-34, furthercomprising directly connecting the outlet to a mobile device through theone or more wireless communication interfaces.

Example 36 includes a method, comprising: obtaining, at an augmentedreality device, communications data configured to be used to form acommunications link with an outlet; forming, using the communicationsdata, the communications link between the outlet and the augmentedreality device; obtaining status data about at least one of: the outlet,at least one receptacle of the outlet, and at least one cable insertedinto a receptacle of the outlet; using the augmented reality device,rendering an augmented reality overlay that at least one of: includesthe status data and is indicative of the status data; and displaying orprojecting, with the augmented reality device, the augmented realityoverlay at least one of over an image of at least one real object and bythe image of the at least one real object.

Example 37 includes the method of Example 36, wherein obtaining statusdata about the receptacle comprises obtaining information about at leastone of: whether a cable is inserted into the receptacle and informationabout a cable inserted into the receptacle.

Example 38 includes the method of any of Examples 36-37, whereinobtaining status data comprises selecting at least one of: an outlet,and at least one receptacle of the outlet.

Example 39 includes the method of any of Examples 36-38, furthercomprising: forming a communications link with a content managementserver; and wherein obtaining status data comprises obtaining statusdata from at least one of the outlet and the content management server.

Example 40 includes the method of any of Examples 36-39, furthercomprising detecting at least one of: insertion of a connector of acable from a receptacle of the outlet and removal of the connector ofthe cable from the receptacle of the outlet, where the status dataincludes information about detection of the at least one of theinsertion and the removal.

Example 41 includes the method of Example 40, further comprising:forming a communications link with a content management server; andsending information, to the content management server, about thedetection of the at least one of the insertion and the removal.

Example 42 includes the method of any of Examples 36-41, whereinobtaining the communications data comprises: detecting a marker on or byan outlet in an image captured by an augmented reality device; andextracting, from an image of the marker, communications data configuredto be used to form a communications link with the outlet.

Example 43 includes the method of any of Examples 36-42, whereinobtaining the communications data comprises: forming a communicationslink with a content management server; and obtaining the communicationsdata from the content management server.

A number of embodiments have been described. Nevertheless, it will beunderstood that various modifications to the described embodiments maybe made without departing from the spirit and scope of the claimedinvention. Also, combinations of the individual features of theabove-described embodiments are considered within the scope of theinventions disclosed here.

What is claimed is:
 1. A system for providing connectivity management,the system comprising: a content management server configured to manageconnectivity for a network; one or more central controllers configuredto collect connectivity information for at least a portion of thenetwork for use by the content management server; and at least oneoutlet having one or more ports for receiving one or more plugs, whereinconnectivity information is communicated between the outlet and thecentral controller through one or more wireless communication interface.2. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more wireless communicationinterfaces are at least one of: a Bluetooth network interface; BluetoothLow Energy network interface; and an IEEE802.15.4 compliant networkinterface.
 3. The system of claim 1, wherein the outlet comprises anoutlet microcontroller, the outlet microcontroller comprising: a memorythat stores connectivity information about the outlet; and a system onchip comprising a processing unit and a wireless communication interfacein the one or more wireless communication interfaces.
 4. The system ofclaim 3, wherein the outlet further comprises: contacts for connectingto the one or more plug; at least one LED, wherein the at least one LEDis driven by the processing unit.
 5. The system of claim 4, wherein theprocessing unit drives the at least one LED based on instructionsreceived from the one or more central controllers.
 6. The system ofclaim 4, wherein the content management server directs the at least oneLED to be illuminated when a user selects a reference to an outlet inthe at least one outlet that is associated with the at least one LED,wherein the reference is displayed on a human machine interfaceconnected to the content management server.
 7. The system of claim 3,wherein the processing unit receives connectivity information from theone or more plugs, wherein the processing unit transmits theconnectivity information to the central collector through the wirelesscommunication interface.
 8. The system of claim 3, wherein the outletmicrocontroller receives power from at least one of: a battery; powermains; and power over Ethernet.
 9. The system of claim 3, wherein theoutlet microcontroller indicates to the one or more central controllersthat a plug is inserted into the outlet.
 10. The system of claim 1,wherein the outlet provides connectivity information in response to arequest from the one or more central controllers.
 11. The system ofclaim 1, wherein a transmission through the one or more wirelesscommunication interfaces has a unique address that identifies one of theoutlet and the plurality of connector plugs that produced thetransmission.
 12. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more centralcontrollers is at least one of: a personal computer; a dedicated centralcontrolling device; a part of the content management server; and amobile device.
 13. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or morecentral controllers comprises: a collection wireless communicationinterface for receiving the connectivity information that is transmittedthrough the one or more wireless communication interfaces in the atleast one outlet; a TCP/IP interface to provide the connectivityinformation to the content management server through a TCP/IP network;and a web services interface.
 14. The system of claim 1, wherein thecontent management server balances the number of outlets in the at leastone outlet that are in communication with each central controller in theone or more central controllers.
 15. The system of claim 14, wherein thecontent management server balances the number of outlets incommunication with each central controller based on at least one of: areceived signal strength indication; and location of the at least oneoutlet.
 16. The system of claim 1, wherein the at least one outletcomprises a switch that directs the content management server to providea user with identifying information for the at least one outlet when theswitch is turned on.
 17. An outlet for providing connectivityinformation, the outlet comprising: one or more ports for receiving oneor more plugs; an outlet microcontroller, the outlet microcontrollercomprising: a memory that stores connectivity information about theoutlet; and a system on chip comprising a processing unit and one ormore wireless communication interfaces, wherein, the processing unittransmits the connectivity information regarding the outlet and the oneor more plugs to a central controller through the one or more wirelesscommunication interfaces.
 18. The outlet of claim 17, wherein the one ormore wireless communication interfaces are at least one of: a Bluetoothnetwork interface; Bluetooth low energy network interface; and anIEEE802.15.4 compliant network interface.
 19. The outlet of claim 17,wherein the outlet further comprises at least one LED, wherein the atleast one LED is driven by the processing unit.
 20. The outlet of claim19, wherein the processing unit drives the at least one LED based oninstructions received from the central controller.
 21. The outlet ofclaim 17, wherein the processing unit receives connectivity informationfrom the one or more plugs, wherein the processing unit transmits theconnectivity information to the central collector through the wirelesscommunication interface.
 22. The outlet of claim 17, wherein the outletmicrocontroller receives power from at least one of: a battery; powermains; and power over Ethernet.
 23. The outlet of claim 17, wherein theoutlet microcontroller indicates to the central controller that a plugis inserted into the outlet.
 24. The outlet of claim 17, wherein theoutlet microcontroller provides connectivity information in response toa request from the central controller.
 25. A method for communicatingconnectivity information, the method comprising: identifyingconnectivity information at an outlet for use by a content managementserver; transmitting the connectivity information to a centralcontroller over one or more wireless communication interfaces; providingthe connectivity information to the content management server from thecentral controller.
 26. The method of claim 25, wherein the one or morewireless communication interfaces are at least one of: a Bluetoothnetwork interface; Bluetooth low energy network interface; and anIEEE802.15.4 compliant network interface.
 27. The method of claim 25,further comprising driving at least one LED at the outlet based oninstructions received from the central controller.
 28. The method ofclaim 27, wherein the content management server directs the at least oneLED to be illuminated when a user selects a reference to an outlet thatis associated with the at least one LED, wherein the reference isdisplayed on a human machine interface connected to the contentmanagement server.
 29. The method of claim 25, wherein the outletindicates to the central controller that a plug is inserted into theoutlet.
 30. The method of claim 25, wherein the outlet providesconnectivity information in response to a request from the centralcontroller.
 31. The method of claim 25, wherein a transmission throughthe one or more wireless communication interfaces has a unique addressthat identifies the outlet as the source of the transmission.
 32. Themethod of claim 25, further comprising balancing the number of outletsin communication with the central controller in comparison to othercentral controllers in communication with the content management server.33. The method of claim 32, wherein balancing the number of outlets isbased on at least one of: a received signal strength indication foroutlets in communication with the central controllers that are managedby the content management server; and location of the outlets inrelation to the central controllers.
 34. The method of claim 25, furthercomprising providing a user with identifying information for the outletwhen a switch on the outlet is actuated.
 35. The method of claim 25,further comprising directly connecting the outlet to a mobile devicethrough the one or more wireless communication interfaces.
 36. A method,comprising: obtaining, at an augmented reality device, communicationsdata configured to be used to form a communications link with an outlet;forming, using the communications data, the communications link betweenthe outlet and the augmented reality device; obtaining status data aboutat least one of: the outlet, at least one receptacle of the outlet, andat least one cable inserted into a receptacle of the outlet; using theaugmented reality device, rendering an augmented reality overlay that atleast one of: includes the status data and is indicative of the statusdata; and displaying or projecting, with the augmented reality device,the augmented reality overlay at least one of over an image of at leastone real object and by the image of the at least one real object. 37.The method of claim 36, wherein obtaining status data about thereceptacle comprises obtaining information about at least one of:whether a cable is inserted into the receptacle and information about acable inserted into the receptacle.
 38. The method of claim 36, whereinobtaining status data comprises selecting at least one of: an outlet,and at least one receptacle of the outlet.
 39. The method of claim 36,further comprising: forming a communications link with a contentmanagement server; and wherein obtaining status data comprises obtainingstatus data from at least one of the outlet and the content managementserver.
 40. The method of claim 36, further comprising detecting atleast one of: insertion of a connector of a cable from a receptacle ofthe outlet and removal of the connector of the cable from the receptacleof the outlet, where the status data includes information aboutdetection of the at least one of the insertion and the removal.
 41. Themethod of claim 40, further comprising: forming a communications linkwith a content management server; and sending information, to thecontent management server, about the detection of the at least one ofthe insertion and the removal.
 42. The method of claim 36, whereinobtaining the communications data comprises: detecting a marker on or byan outlet in an image captured by an augmented reality device; andextracting, from an image of the marker, communications data configuredto be used to form a communications link with the outlet.
 43. The methodof claim 36, wherein obtaining the communications data comprises:forming a communications link with a content management server; andobtaining the communications data from the content management server.